Internal-combustion engine



G. MELLEN.

INTERNAL COMBUSTIO'N. ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED sinn-,1918.

1 ,396,045.1 Patented NovE 8, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET l.

G. MELLEN.

-INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED sEP111,191s.

1,396,045. y Patented Nov.l8, .19211.

4 SHEETS-SHEET Z.

@wom/woz y /zwwwm @brow mf G. MELLEN.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION min sEP1,11,1918.

1,396,045 Patented Nov. 8, 192L 4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

G. MELLEN.

INTERNAL COMBUSHON ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT= Il. 1918K Patented Nov. 8, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 8, 1921.

Application led September 11, 1918. Serial No. 253,630.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GRENVILLE MELLEN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cranford, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Internal-CombustionEngines, of which the following is a specication.

My invention relates to internal combustion engines and has for itsobject to provide means whereby there can be introduced into the enginecylinders, an additional or supercharge of gas, either air or a-combustible mixture, or both, under considerable superatmosphericpressure, in order that the power of the engine may be increased withlittle or no increase in weight.

In carrying out thisobject I prefer to use a multiple cylinder enginecomposed `of-a number of units, each unit consisting of two engines,whose cylinders open into a common crank-case, the pistons beingconnected to the same crank-shaft, or in the same. crank-plane, so thatthey move in unison, with alternate power strokes. The crankshaft isprovided with filler-disks and the crank-case is so constructed thatthere is a minimum amount of free space therein, so that the charge,corresponding substantially to the cubic contents of both cylinders inaddition to that which already fills said crank-case space, iscompressed into a relatively small space. I further provide meanswhereby this compressed supercharge is delivered into the cylindertoward, at, and beyond the end of the normal intake stroke through alarge number of `ports and through practically unrestricted shortpassages. This supercharge of additional delivery is effected onlyduring the bottom of the normal intake stroke, the time being fromapproximately 4l degrees before bottom center to 4l degrees after bottomcenter, so that the entire quantity of compressed supercharge isavailable during this time. As a result an adequate quantity ofsupercharge from a greater source of supply ata more maintained pressureis delivered, in the time during which the supercharge ports are open,which is about half the length of time that the normal intake valves areopen.

My invention particularly relates to the use of a sleeve valve arrangedbetween an extension of the cylinder and a wall of the crank-case, thisvalve and the cylinder, or an extension thereof having ports adapted toengine, through which a controllable supply of air or combustible gas orboth are ad-A mitted into the crank-case.

My invention further relates t0 means for mounting and rotating thesleeve valves in such relation that there is no leakage from onecrank-case or crank-case compartment into the next through the sleevevalve gears, where there should be no leakage.

In the drawings Figure l is an elevation of one of the engines, partlyin section;

FigyQ is a longitudinal vertical section through a pair of engines;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the ported skirt of the cylinder;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the rotary sleeve valve;

Fig. 5 is an isometric view of the piston;

Fig. 6 is an isometric view of the upper portion of the crank-case; and

Fig. 7 is an isometric drawing showing a part of the lower portion ofthe crank-case;

lF ig. 8 is a diagrammatic'. plan of the rotary sleeves and drivingmechanism for same in a multiple cylinder engine;

Fig. 9 1s a sectional detail view of the crank-case intake manifold;

Fig. 10 is a transverse sectional elevation of a pair of enginesarranged as shown in Fig. l2;

Fig. 11 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the same arrangement;and

Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic plan view of Figs. 10 and 11, showing amodified arrangement of the engines.

As each of the engines is substantially identical in construction, adescription of one will .suice for all. Each cylinder is provided withthe usual inlet and exhaust valves 1 and 2, which are operated in theusual manner from a cam shaft 3, which'is in turn driven from thecrank-shaft 4 by means of gears or a drive-chain (shown in dotted linesin Fig. 1) which also drives thel pulley 5 of the magneto 6. Near thelower end of the cylinder proper are provided a number of ports 7, 8 9in a skirt'or extension thereof, Rotatably mounted in a led e 11 (Fig.6) of the crank-case is a rotary s eeve valve 12 (shown` in Fig. 4),having port openings 13, 14 and 15 arranged to register respectivelywith ports 7, 8 and 9 in the.

cylinder. This valve 12 is rotated by means of a gear 16, which may bedriven by a worm 12 on the cam-shaft or from a worm driven gear on therotary valve of the ad' the gears 16 of the sleeve valves may each.

drive the other, only one bein driven by a gear on the cam-shaft. lt iso vious that a separate worm gear shaft could be used.

The upper portion of the crank-case is provided with ports 17 (Fig. 6)which open 1nto manifolds 18, 19, secured to the faces 20 on the sidesof the crank-case. Fach of the manifolds is provided with an inlet 21and 22 having butteriy valves23 and 24 therein. rlhe inlet ports 17 arearranged to register with ports 15 and 9 in the rotary valve andcylinder skirt.

The piston 25 is preferably made in the form shown in Fig. 5, with sidescut away, as shown at 26, to provide a free passageway for compressed`gas from the crank-case, ample bearing surfaces 27 being left asindicated. The wrist pin of the connecting rod is located in the opening58. As shown in Figs. 1, 2, 6 and 7, the crank-case isfmade t0 conformas closely as possible to the arc of rotation of the cranks and fillerdisks 28, 2.8 secured to the crank-shaft serve to diminn ish as far aspossible the free-space within the crank-case. The connecting rods 29,29, are connected to a crank or to cranks which are in the same angularposition, as shown in Fig. 2 wherein the pair is one behind the other,and'in Fig. l() wherein the pair is side by side and the s ace or spacesin which the crank or each o the cranks of a pair revolve are common orconnected by an opening such 'as 30 through the crank-shaft where thepair .is one cylinder behind the other as in Fig. 2,'or by the opening Xas shownin Fig. 10 wherein the pair is formed by cylinders side by side,these spaces constituting therefore in effect a single crankcasechamber. There is thus provided a crank-case chamber having a limitedfree space, in open communication with the ends of the two cylinders,whereby the gas previously drawn into the chamber Von the upstroke ofthe two pistons, is on their downstroke compressed to a'greatextent.

Each of the normal inlets t0 the cylinders is connected by a pipe 31which constitutes the normal intake manifold, to a carbureter.

The crank-shaft is lubricated by a forcefeed, and in order to prevent anundue amountof oil being thrown out centrifugally, oil guard plates 50,see Figs. 1v

and 2, are placed at the opening of the crankl case into Vthe cylinderspaces. A dam 32 is pistons is at the end of their downward strokestoward the crank-case,-viz., intake,

stroke for A and explosion stroke for B. Piston 25ihas uncovered port 7and this port and port 8 are in open register with ports 13 and14 of thesleeve valve, so that there has been a flow of compressed gas from thecrank-case into cylinder A, this flow passing up both sides of thepiston through the wide passageways 26, through ports 14 and 8 into theannular chamber around the sleeve valve and thencel through ports 13 and7 into the cylinder. lt 4will be noted that these passageways are roomyand direct, and that there are four large ports so that the flow of gasis practically unrestricted, a feature of great importance since theperiod of time during which these ports are open is relatively ',short,as previously described. Because of this construction the area of thesesupercharge ports exceeds the area of the normal intake port or ports,thus to an extent compensating for the shorter time factor. The cylinderis by this means completely filled with gas and at a superatmosphericpressure, that is, at pressure in excess of that of the atmosphere inwhich the pistons rise, compressing and B exhausting, a fresh supply ofair or other gas is drawn into the common crank-case through the ports15 in the sleeves registering o en. with the ports 17 in the'crank case,an in the skirt of the cylinder. As the pistons reach the' upper limitof their stroke, the exhaust valve in B is closed and the inlet valveopened, so that on the next inward stroke toward the crarfk case, causedby the ignition and explosion of the compressed charge in cylinder A, anormal charge of explosive mixture will be drawn into cylinder B, whichwill be supplemented during the lower limits of this stroke by asupercharge of compressed gas from the crank-case, since piston 27bvhasuncovered ports 7' in this cylinderB and the corresponding sleeve valvehas been rotated to `open the passage-V way to the crank-case in thesame manner as heretofore described for cylinder A. On the next upwardstroke explosion gases will' be discharged from `cylinder A- and fuelgases will be compressed in cylinder B, the ignition of which will drivethe pistons downward on the next or nal stroke of the cycle. It will benoted that only at the end of the normal intake stroke of each cylinder,do the sleeve valves make connection between the crank-.case and suchcylinder, and that, as none of the gas compressed in the crank-case isotherwise used, the whole volume of this compressed gas is available forintroduction into each of the cylinders in turn at a more greatlymaintained pressure. As the volume of gas compressed is thatcorresponding to the displacement of the two cylinders, there isobtained when compressed into the common reservoir a supply of gas,ample in quantity and under such considerable superatmospheric pressurethat the supercharge is delivered to each of the paired cylinders insuccession at a highery maintained rate of flow than if the superchargewere drawn from a single crank-case compartment connected to a singlecylinder only.

In the ordinary operation of an engine at high speed, there isintroduced on the in'- take stroke, only about 85% of the gas whichwould otherwise fill such chamber to atmospheric pressure at a suicienttime factor, which means that there is less than atmospheric pressure inthe cylinder before the compression stroke begins. By my. in-

vention, the supercharge from the crank-case not only fills the cylinderto atmospheric pressure 0n the admission stroke but there is aconsiderable superatmospheric pressure before the compression strokebegins, with the result that the ,maximum compression pressure underwhich it is found practical to operate, may be obtained in combustionchambers larger, in proportion to the piston displacement, than isusual, thus increasing the mean effective pressure. The total power ofthe engine for the same piston displacement is thus materiallyincreased', and.

the ratio of weight to power developed is decreased.

I have shown two manifolds, one on each side of the engine through whichgas may be admitted to the crank-case. I may close the admission valveof one and connect a carbureter to the other of such manifolds so thatthe ,supercharge consists of a mixture of air and fuel. This arrangementhas been found to increase the power of the engine, when at sea-level,from 30 to 40%.

owever, air alone may be admitted, and in either case, the highcompression of the supercharge will assist in maintaining the power ofthe engine at higher levels, as when the engine is used on an aeroplane.The compressed supercharge of air .will in this latter instance beparticularly useful at higher level, since it will furnish to thecylinder -gas of greater density and therefore containing more oxygen'than the natural air at any given level, thereby not only insuring anadditional amount of oxygen for combustion but greater density of theworking charge. 90

As shown in Figs. 10, 11 and 12, I may arrange the separate engines ofthe dual unit so that the engines of one unit are side by side insteadof one behind the other. By this arrangement a shorter engine isobtained which is of advantage in certain types of aeroplanes. In thiscase the crank-shafts 4, 4 of each row of four engines are provided Withgears 80, 80, in mesh with a gear 81 on the transmission shaft 82. Inthis arrangement the eam-shafts 83 are arranged above each row ofengines, these cam-shafts and the sleeve drive shaft 84 being driven inany suitable manner, as by gears or chains, from the crank-shaft and inproperly timedrela- 105 tion thereto. The normal inlet valves 1, 1, arearranged on adjoining sides of adjacent cylinders, the fuel beingsupplied to the inlet passages from pip3e 31. In this arrangement, thecylinders and A4 are fired si- 110 multaneously, then cylinders B3 andA2, then B4 and A and then B2 and A3, the cranks connected to thepistons of each pair of engines or supercharge unit being in parallelplanes.

I claim 1. In a four stroke-cycle internal combus` tion engine of thecrank-.case compression type including a compression space in opencommunication with the end of both cylin- 120 ders, a crank-shaft in thecompression space, pistons connected to the crank-shaft in the sameangular relation, inlet and exhaust valves in the upper portion of thecylinders, the" combination, in each cylinder, of two 125 ports spacedfrom eachother in axial direction, a sleeve valve having two portsspaced in axial direction and adapted to register with the ports of thecylinder, a casing surrounding the sleeve valve and defining a 130passage 'intermediate the ports of the sleeve valve, gear mechanism 4foractuating the sleeve valve to periodically bring the ports in the sleeveva'lveand the cylinder in registry, all said parts being so relatedthat-compressed gas is admitted from 'the compression space into thecylinder When the piston is near the end of the suction stroke.

2. Apparatus in accordance With claim l including an additional port inthe cylinder, in the sleeve valve and in the casing surrounding thesleeve valve adapted to register to admit gals into the compressionspace and means forv additionally actuating the sleeve valve to admitgas through the said ports during each stroke of thepistons away fromthe compression space. i

3. An internal lcombustion engine comprising multiple pairs of enginesas defined in claim 2 and including a manifold interconnecting theadmission ports in the casings surrounding the sleeve valves.

4f. An engine according to claim 3 having a carbureter connected to themanifold.

5. An internal combustion engine comprising multiplepairs of enginesaccording to claim 2, having admission ports to the compression spaceon` opposite sides thereof and a'separate manifold for the ports on eachside. Y

6. An internal combustion engine comprising multiple pairs of enginesaccording to claim 2in which each sleeve valve is surrounded by a gearand the gears of each pair of engines are in mesh and one of said meshedgears is driven from a Worm on the cam shaft.

In testimony whereof, I aiiix my signature.

GRENVILLE MELLEN.

